Rifled lead balls

[Dungbeetle]

I have recently found two heavily rifled lead  balls about 18mm in diameter. Anyone any idea on the gun that they are from? Sorry no pics

[Chef Geoff]

Rifled? You'll have to explain a bit more as bullets and balls aren't actually rifled, the barrel is.

[Dungbeetle]

Chef these are round lead balls similar to an ordinary muzzle loaded ball but have deep rifling marks on them, one has 11 ridges around the circumference the other is damaged. They look like they have been fired out of a breech loader but the calibre is about the same as a 12 bore. Hope this helps

[Chef Geoff]

Well I would think that you can practically narrow it down to one offender and that would be the Baker rifle. It was a skirmishing weapon used in the Napoleonic wars. In fact if you ever watch the TV series "Sharp" you'll notice that his company use much shorter weapons than those "muskets" of the line infantry, they are Baker rifles.

[peanut]

Rifled? You'll have to explain a bit more as bullets and balls aren't actually rifled, the barrel is.

picture would be useful.
Muzzle loading rifles in Britain have had rifling way back to the 1853 patten  Enfield which had a .577 calibre ball cartridge round and a 5x land rifled barrel.
Both muzzle and breech loading rifles have used a lead ball cartidge as well as buckshot and various other loads .
Rifling goes back to the 1500's but most muzzle loading guns using blackpowder and lead ball rounds have been smooth bored.

[peanut]

mmm the Baker patten 1800 rifle i'd overlooked that one . That apparently was the first british military gun to have rifling . Although I suppose there would have been plenty of US and European privately imported guns by the late 1700's or even earlier perhaps.

[Chef Geoff]

The Enfield fired a Minié ball not a musket ball, totally different.

[Dungbeetle]

Thanks for your replies gentlemen, these ball rounds came off land that was owned by a family that shot big game in Africa in the early years of the last century. That is what makes me think that they were from a large bore sporting rifle. A friend is going to put pics up at the weekend so that should help in identification.

[peanut]

The Enfield fired a Minié ball not a musket ball, totally different.

yes ..the pattern 1850 enfield  did  but the ball was half round with a shallow length with 3x grooves and a slight depression at the base.heres a picture of the round.


Without a picture of the bullet found by DB it may have be so badly damaged when fired that it could look more like a musket ball than a minie ball round. I didn't see any mention of any grooves or depression in the base so assumed  it may have been a musket ball .

Never much cared for  black powder .

I much prefer my 303 Enfield No4  and SMLE which I shall be shooting this weekend  

[Dungbeetle]

Peanut these balls are solid, with rifling marks incised into them. I have a 577 Enfield bullet that I found in the same area which is an elongated shape with a hollow base and much smaller than the ball rounds.

[Chef Geoff]

I much prefer my 303 Enfield No4  and SMLE which I shall be shooting this weekend  

Why yuk lol Have you fired a K98? It really makes you wonder how we won the war lol

[peanut]

I much prefer my 303 Enfield No4  and SMLE which I shall be shooting this weekend  

Why yuk lol Have you fired a K98? It really makes you wonder how we won the war lol

 not a secret nazi are you Chef ?


My family have been using Enfields to defend Britain and her interests for the past 150 years and I feel a kind of affinity to my ancestors when I'm shooting my Enfields.

[Chef Geoff]

No ...no secret about it, I'm a Nazi
My family have been defending the nation for 200 years in warships, but I ain't going sailing lol

[Christoph1945]

A photo of Dungbeetles ballistics................

[Chef Geoff]

OOohhhhh, ummmmmm, urrrrrr??? They are not rifled
Now they are unusual to find, they are shot gun "bullets" commonly known as "Brenneke slugs". Unusual in this country as they are used for bigger game than we have here, so I would think you have a practice area of some sort. They only date to around 1900.